Shoelace at RB?

Submitted by SD Go Blue on
http://michigandaily.com/content/carlos-brown-limited-minor-should-have… From the article: "In the last rotation, Forcier ran the play at quarterback again, but with Robinson at running back. Though it wasn’t practiced during the first part of practice, the play could potentially give the opportunity for Robinson to pass the ball to a receiver off the pitch." Is it possible that we not only see Shoelace line up at RB, but also a little trickeration out of the formation?
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ThornXBL

October 8th, 2009 at 12:31 PM ^

The PBA is on Sundays a lot on ESPN's channels. They've done a lot of events out of EMU's arena recently. When I'm with my folks on Sundays; my dad likes to watch it in between other sports. And if Bowden did invent that word, I still loathe it. Reminds me of Will Ferrel's GWB & "Strategery", except it's not a joke.

Joined: 09/10/2009

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Beavis

October 8th, 2009 at 12:37 PM ^

I think what this article is talking about is something similar to the one play (Denard's first of his college career) we ran against Western.

Joined: 07/28/2009

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oakapple

October 8th, 2009 at 12:44 PM ^

Namely, Denard Robinson moving to another position. This won't happen in 2009, aside perhaps from the odd gimmick play or two. If Foricer goes down (a distinct possibility, as he has been playing hurt), Robinson is his backup, and he needs all the practice he can get. Practice time is too limited to waste it on teaching him a second position, when he has not yet mastered the first. We'll have to see about 2010, but a lot of it will depend on how quickly Devin Gardner picks up the offense. I suspect that the coaching staff would dearly like to redshirt Gardner, which would mean Robinson is backing up Forcier for at least one more year. A lot of folks have written off the possibility that Robinson could ever be effective passing the ball. I don't think he'll ever be a Tom Brady, but I do believe he'll eventually be good enough to make defenders respect the pass, which will open up lanes for him to run. People underestimate the learning curve to make the transition from high school, and unlike Forcier he did not have spring practice.

Joined: 02/06/2009

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Tater

October 8th, 2009 at 12:46 PM ^

I agree that you can't play not to get hurt, but I don't want to see DR at RB or slot on a regular basis. I do think a few plays where there are flea-flickers and reverse passes would definitely open up the field for the offense, though. I'm sure everyone remembers how great it felt to see DR score on his first carry. Imagine how great it would be if he did pass it back across the field to Forcier, who would probably have either a wide-open reciever on a deep route or a lot of room in front of him to run. After all, the stated object of the spread IS to make the defense cover the entire field; DR on one side of the backfield, Tate on the other, and someone running a deep route would definitely qualify as making a team do just that. I don't know how many college teams have the discipline to not break down somewhere with those kind of plays. At this point, for those who are concerned with injury, maybe DR is safer on trick plays than running his own series' at QB. I just want to see some more innovation from the "Godfather of the Spread Option." It's not like he has suddenly lost the spark of creativity that led him to create the SO in the first place. RR is at a very high-profile school now, and in a great position to evolve the game even further. If we're lucky, we'll all get the "best seats in the house" to watch football evolve.

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